Sheriffs and police chiefs often say that the majority of crime is committed by a small minority of people. The bust of an alleged “drug house” at 11 Raemoor Drive on Friday (June 21) resulted in the arrests of five people, four of them on felony charges. Four of the five are previously convicted felons, some of them a few times over.
Those arrested were Margaret Tillman, 37, Glenn James Moratto, 33, Jordan Cheney, 26, Samantha Tillman, 34, and John Jakobson, 40.
Margaret Tillman was convicted of two felonies in 2013, for burglary and grand theft. She was sentenced to two years in prison. Less than two years ago she was found guilty on three additional felonies, including grand theft and dealing in stolen property, a second-degree felony that exposed her to 15 years in prison. She was sentenced to one year in prison and was ordered to pay restitution, which she did not do, according to court records.
Moratto was found guilty of a felony driving infraction two years ago, trafficking in stolen property, felony interference with child custody and another felony driving infraction in 2013, and served briefly in prison. Cheney has been charged with felonies previously but not convicted, his charges having been reduced. Samantha Tillman was found guilty of a felony possession of a controlled substance and of grand theft in 2015. She failed out of drug court, her probation was revoked, and she was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Jakobson faced felony charges but wasn’t convicted on them in Flagler. But he has been convicted of felonies and sentenced to prison in Arizona, where he has a lengthy record.
Friday morning, several Flagler County Sheriff’s detectives and deputies, including a SWAT Team detachment and members of the federal secret service, served a warrant at the Raemoor Drive house. The five individuals were in the house.
The search allegedly produced unused needles, glass pipes, various drug paraphernalia, fentanyl, Oxymorphone and methamphetamines. At one point,a detective concluded that as law enforcement was getting ready to go in the house, drugs may have been flushed down the toilet, twice. Several printers and computers were also seized from the property. The equipment was suspected of being used for printing counterfeit currency. That part of the investigation is ongoing and further charges are pending by the United States Secret Service.
Cheney is charged with Possession of Fentanyl, Tampering with or Fabricating Physical Evidence, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Margaret Tillman and Jakobson were charged with Possession of Methamphetamine, Possession of Schedule III Controlled Substance, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Possession of New or Legend Drug. Moratto and Samantha Tillman were charged with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. By late Monday afternoon, only Cheney had posted bail on his $5,500 bond.
The occupants were renters. The owner of the house told law enforcement that an eviction process would be started.
During the serving of the warrant, deputies planted a sign on the front lawn, “This drug house closed for business,” with Sheriff Rick Staly’s signature. The signs, a recent publicity stunt–in at least one case, the sheriff himself posed next to the sign and the image was posted on the agency’s Facebook page–have drawn criticism from Realtors and from Palm Coast government officials–criticism the officials voiced to the sheriff. The signs, which falsely presume not only the occupants of the house but the owners of the property guilty, are planted while the search warrant is being served. City officials have asked that the signs not remain. A sheriff’s spokesman today said the signs have never been left behind, to avoid them getting defaced.
Correction: Raemoor Drive was misidentified as Raemon Drive in a previous version of this story.
Steve says
Some PCs finest slackers .CYA in a few years . You all mess with alot of people for doing so wrong yourselves. Always comes back to bite you.
Marty Barrett says
For the agencies and resources deployed, this has to be considered a swing and a miss (although they’ll never admit as much), as they only end up with a few low level drug addicts. On the other hand, at least they get to play dress up in their SWAT disguises and Staly gets to display his razor sharp wit with his lawn sign. Hilarious. But notwithstanding all the machismo and jingoistic, chest thumping and rhetoric, all they are doing here if fighting a war that can’t be won, and yet they don’t even know it.
Peaches McGee says
I haven’t seen any Realtors or City Officials combat crime in the manner this Sheriff has. You may not like his tactics, but it gets results. Period.
Hmmm says
Good job…kicking in the door on junkies!! How about the bust where the officers have the score of drugs on a table taking pictures? Taking down the real dealers. The cockiness of the sheriff is ridiculous, because the big “drug bust” are super petty, low end users!!!!!
Sam I am says
There is a difference in a drug dealer and drug addicts and they send a crack head to another crack heads house to set up another crack head waste of taxpayers money lets get some programs started
hawkeye says
I agree with peaches, our crime rate is down 20% ,the FCSO is doing something right. I am glad to see any of these asshats arrested and hopefully one of them will give up where they are getting their supply and bigger and worse people will get arrested,go FCSO and sheriff Staly!
average tax payer says
Setting a pile of money on fire would’ve been more productive.
Dave says
Wow all of that for a couple junkies and a minor amount of drugs, what a joke. This is all just a waste of resources and taxpayer money. And the stupid yard signs make a mockery of our justice system and waste resources. They also seem to presume guilt before the people involved are tried in court. The neighborhood was better off off before the raid.
Agkistrodon says
To all those who “claim” it is a waste of resources, you do realize the crime rate is DROPPING. And for the record, when a “junkie” comes up and sticks a knife or gun in your face to get money for their “fix” Or you come home and all you valuables have been stolen from YOUR house, Maybe then you will change your tune on how, innocent and harmless these JUNKIES ARE. There are NO INNOCENT junkies.
Some other guy says
Since the downfall of easy access to prescription narcotics, these folks have turned to heroin via needles and meth, etc. hardcore dirty unchecked (garbage) street drugs. You can see over time in their arrest record photos how their casual use turned to addiction, which turned to petty crime, and now the Walking Dead. Less crime? Yes. Why? Not why you’d think. There are more and more people in the past 2-3 years that were headed down this road, that are now being literally SAVED by daily medications prescribed by doctors; yes health professional (like buprenorphine, which doesn’t get you “high” and ironically one of these were arrested for) so that they can work, live and have a productive life without the agony of addiction. These folks are just pawns in an elaborate game that they don’t call the shots in. The sheriffs office is just doing their jobs by putting them back into the system (which they’ll never escape) but, it only puts a Band-aid on the real issue and gives the public a false sense of “cleaning up the town,” because they aren’t the importers… they’re just pathetic “end- users” with ruined lives. it all goes round and around……. but ROOT source of the epidemic, seems to never be found.
C’mon man says
Waste of resources? They were caught with enough Fentanyl to eliminate half this county.
Unknown says
Some of you on here are a bunch of ungrateful pricks who have to find the negative in everything. Be grateful people are out there fighting crime and at least trying to make our town a better place. Do you even hear the rudeness that comes out of your mouth?! Wow.
palmcoaster says
Thank you Sheriff Staly great job…You may want to keep an eye on the house with Fern Court address but front Florida Park Drive there is a new bunch of tenants with very suspicious activities there and no less than four to six cars on their driveway and many more after dark at night and individuals trespassing with cars in private driveways of vacant houses “for sale in Fern Court at night or parked in and out on Fern Ct swales. Always disruptive fights on back of the named house as well as very loud musing past midnight disrupting neighbors sleep.The residents are concerned and afraid so please have your cruisers patrol when possible.
Landlord in renting again without city rental registration and currently cited by city code enforcement.
MySelf&I says
@unknown-I so agree with you! I wonder if the criminals were a different color… if their opinions would change! Just sayin’
Nobody says
THe crime rate is going down because they are arresting everyone and anyone for small amount of weed, there’s has been slim to none real crime that these guy make seem they are doing a good deed when in reality they are just arresting people for the money, just know one year of probation plus court fees are about 5,000 dollars if not more. Majority of it is going to the county.